MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The possibility of a Russian response to US meddling in Syria’s internal affairs was outlined in a September 1957 note written by UK diplomats and intelligence chiefs and intended for then-British prime minister Harold Macmillan, The Financial Times reports.
"[Russia] would be bound to regard the overthrow of the Syrian regime as involving a serious reverse for them in the Middle East," the note says, as quoted by the newspaper on Friday, adding that "[the Soviets’] reaction to the US policy on Syria could be expected to be strong and determined."
The Financial Times stresses that some things in the 1957 note, formerly classified but released by UK authorities to the national archives on Friday, are not applicable to the present realities. In 1956, the US had backed Syria's close ally Egypt against the UK, France and Israel when Egyptian President Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, driving US-UK relations to a post-war low.
According to the newspaper, the note, initialed by Macmillan and intended for the highest levels of the British government, describes a lot of the latest developments in the Syrian civil war and sets out ways in which Moscow could respond to US involvement in an internal conflict in Syria.
A US-led international coalition has been targeting the positions of ISIL radicals in Syria since September 2014, without the approval of the Syrian government or the UN Security Council.
Russia started carrying out precision airstrikes against ISIL targets in Syria on September 30, 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
The United States, which has been supporting the so-called "moderate" Syrian opposition and calling for Assad to step down, has accused Russia of targeting Assad’s opponents rather than ISIL positions in Syria. Russia has dismissed such allegations, stressing that they lack factual evidence.
According to the Russian General Staff, ISIL militants have begun a retreat due to Russian aviation airstrikes, having lost much of their weaponry and equipment on the contact line with Syrian troops.
Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed on Thursday that Russia’s goal is to help Assad defeat terrorists in order to pave the way for a political settlement process in Syria. Putin emphasized that it is the Syrian people who should decide the fate of their country, particularly with respect to questions regarding Assad’s tenure in power.
